


Scream Out

by Stratagem



Series: The X-men Aren't Gone (X-men/The Gifted AU) [1]
Category: The Gifted (TV 2017)
Genre: Gen, Nightmares, Poor Kiddo, Single Dad AU, riley - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-04
Updated: 2017-12-04
Packaged: 2019-02-10 11:32:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12911049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stratagem/pseuds/Stratagem
Summary: John's daughter has a nightmare. Unfortunately, kiddo tends to start fires when she's scared...





	Scream Out

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own The Gifted.
> 
> Prompt fill for Tumblr! Featuring Dad!John and his adopted daughter Riley.

A piercing scream followed by the fire alarm going off cut through the apartment and John’s dreams, waking him up abruptly. He had fallen asleep on the couch watching a movie on Netflix, but he was up and heading toward his five-year-old daughter’s room at a run before he was even fully awake.

“Riley!” he yelled as he pulled open her door, yanking it partly off the hinges in his half-asleep state. Bright orange-yellow flames flickered at the edge of Riley’s comforter and across her dresser. The five-year-old was still asleep, heat emanating from her in waves. Tiny holes were starting to appear in her pajamas wear it couldn’t stand the rising temperatures. She was crying in her sleep, one arm thrown over her face as she kicked at the covers.

“No, no, stop!” she shrieked, and new flames started to climb up the lacy pink and yellow curtains.

John raced over and snagged Riley from the bed, ignoring the searing heat that threatened to burn him as he snatched her up into his arms. She woke up with another scream, her dark eyes flying open. There was another flash of desert heat, her powers spiking with her fear, and her wings violently unfurled. 

John couldn’t comfort her yet, not when her bedroom was on fire. He set her in the doorway and grabbed the ever-present fire extinguisher off the wall. Quickly, he doused the swiftly growing blaze. Tossing the extinguisher to the floor, he grabbed Riley, searching for burn marks. “Riley, are you hurt, did you get burned? Riley!” She could handle any heat, but she wasn’t fireproof. 

She was crying too hard to answer him, terror in her dark brown eyes. Heat was still radiating off her, threatening to start another fire. He picked her up and rushed to the bathroom across the hall, sticking her in the tub as he turned on the water. Riley screamed as the cool water crashed over her toes, and she tried to scramble back away from it, her wings banging against the sides of the bathtub as she panicked.

John’s chest tightened as he kept a gentle but firm hold on her, keeping her in place. If he couldn’t get her temperature out-put under control, it might backlash and internalize, sending her actual body temperature rocketing. That had happened once, and it had been the scariest night of his life.

“Take a deep breath, kiddo, it was just a bad dream. You’re okay.”

She sobbed, wings half-folded, palms on the bottom of the tub as she braced herself. She kicked out at the water and then stopped, curling toward the side of the tub. Tears raced down her cheeks as the temperature in the room began to level out, and then she was reaching for him, little hands grabbing at his arms. “Dad…”

John sat down on the edge of the bathtub and picked her up, running his hand over her hair. There were a couple bright red spots on her arms, she needed burn cream. But right now, he needed to calm her down. “It’s all right, you’re all right.” He rubbed his hand around her back in a soothing circle as she cried.

“Sorry,” she said before she broke into a fresh round of tears, her forehead butting against his shoulder.

“It’s okay, you didn’t mean to,” John said, hugging her close, “Don’t worry about it.”

She leaned back and looked up at him, tears in her eyes. “Are bad people going to hurt us?”

John frowned. “No, kiddo. Why would…” Oh. The news that had been playing at the school earlier that day, she must have seen it. He had thought that one of the kids was playing with her, keeping her distracted, but she must’ve picked up on it anyways. There had been an anti-mutant attack in Dallas that day, and a hospital that treated mostly mutant patients had been the target. There had been multiple casualties and a lot of people had died. Xavier’s was already planning to send money and people to help out. He hugged her tighter and then held her away, making sure she was looking him in the eye. “No one is going to hurt you. I promise.”

“You, neither,” she said, leaning forward, her head thunking against his chest. “Why don’t people like us?”

“Lots of people do like us,” he said, gently rubbing her back again. He shifted her so that she was nestled against his arm. “There’s just a few who don’t.”

“They hate us.”

John sucked a breath in through his teeth and looked down at his kid, with her violet skin, pink-streaked hair, and beautiful wings. Things that made her perfect, but the same things that those people she was afraid of didn’t like. He snuggled her close. “They’re stupid and ignorant. No one could hate you, not if they got to know you.” Riley, with her clever, playful, considerate nature, her little quirks, her stubborn streak, was too lovable to hate.

There was a long drawn out silence. While she settled down, John sat her on the edge of the tub and riffled through the medicine cabinet for the burn cream. Carefully, he dabbed some of the cream on the little red spots on her arms. He would take her by the infirmary at Xavier’s tomorrow to make sure she was fine, but he knew enough first aid to handle it. She flinched a couple times but didn’t pull away. 

Finally, she sniffled. “I set my room on fire.”

“Yeah…We’ll fix it tomorrow.”

“Are you mad?”

“Definitely not.” John stood and picked her up. “Let’s go get a snack, then I’ll make a pallet for you, okay?” They could both crash in the living room that night, Riley liked camping indoors. Besides, if she had another nightmare, he would be right there to calm her down.

“Can I have strawberries? And whipped cream…”

John smiled at the sleepy kid with her drooping wings as she flopped against his shoulder. She would probably be asleep by the time he got to the kitchen.


End file.
